


you're the part that makes me whole

by NinefoxNormandy



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Mutual Pining, Post-Canon, Post-Game(s), Post-Golden Deer Route (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Slow Burn, The Kirsten Family Inn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-10
Updated: 2019-11-10
Packaged: 2021-01-27 01:00:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,760
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21383473
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NinefoxNormandy/pseuds/NinefoxNormandy
Summary: After the war, Hilda returns to Goneril territory to rest, relax and maybe find a husband. After a series of disastrous matches, she soon gets bored of courtly life and sets off on a journey of self-discovery. However, she wasn't planning on starting a brand-new business, or on finding love in the arms of a former classmate.
Relationships: Hilda Valentine Goneril/Raphael Kirsten
Comments: 8
Kudos: 24





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I've played barely anything except Fire Emblem: Three Houses since it came out, and on the end of my first Golden Deer playthrough, I got Hilda and Raphael's paired ending and it was just so... adorable??? I couldn't stop thinking about it and hence, this. I think I have the potentially dubious honour of posting the first Hilda/Raphael story on here. Hope you enjoy!
> 
> (Note: There isn't really any smut in this, but there are a few brief mentions of sexual content so I thought it best to go with an M rating, just in case.)

When the battles were finally won, Byleth ascended to the throne as the first ruler of a united Fódlan. Standing in the hall of the monastery, having accepted her crown from Rhea, she turned to Hilda and said “I could use an adviser, you know.” And Hilda felt her heart sink.

“I… it would be an honour, Byleth, but…”

Byleth cocked her head knowingly, giving Hilda that lop-sided smile she’d started to see more frequently over the years. “But you don’t want to.”

Hilda gulped and steeled herself for an explanation. “I… now the war’s over, and Nemesis is finally, totally, dead, I kind of just want to go back to Goneril territory and be a lady for a while.” She sighed and fiddled with the ring on her thumb. “Now that it’s all over, and we’ve got a real chance at peace, at changing things, at _freedom_… I want to go and actually make the most of it. I’ll help my brother rebuild a little, sure, but don’t you think I’ve earned that?” Byleth snorted with laughter, and Hilda punched her in the shoulder. “Hey! I’ve totally earned it. You got a husband out of this, even if he is turning tail and shipping off to Almyra next week – maybe I want one too!”

“Okay, Hilda, okay,” Byleth said, her giggles subsiding. “But you have to come and visit at least. Write me letters. I want to know all about your… _courtly… _endeavours.”

With a wink, Hilda stalked off to where the rest of her former classmates were gathered, calling out over her shoulder, “Ooooh, you _know _I’ll be in touch! I’ll have all the time in the world to write you letters, after all!”

***

As it stood, court was _boring. _Sure, Hilda had a hand in restoring the Goneril homestead to its former glory after the war — something she was considerably good at after handling a good chunk of the monastery’s restoration efforts — and she helped Holst to establish order and rout out the last of the Empire’s supporters from the Alliance, but something was missing. It wasn’t as if she had a lack of suitors — to the contrary, noble gentlemen and wealthy merchants were coming from far and wide to seek the hand of Hilda Valentine Goneril, even in a new age where Crests were no longer the driving force behind the nobility. Hilda supposed that instead, many of them wanted to get close to her for her friendship and influence with Byleth and Claude.

It was tiresome. Hilda was a big Goddess-damned hero regardless of her friendship with Byleth, thank you very much, and though she’d been Claude’s main confidant for years, she had heard barely anything from him since he hopped on his wyvern and took off for Almyra. She hoped he was okay. Hilda had thought about visiting, but she’d been so determined to make the most of being at home that it felt as if she was betraying a promise to herself by leaving. A promise to be lazy, to let her brother indulge her, to find a nice Alliance lord to settle down with.

In her bedroom, she lay surrounded by sheets of paper — the letters she had intended to send out to Byleth, Claude and the rest of her Golden Deer compatriots. They all seemed so disingenuous. If she had the opportunity to write what she really felt… _Hey Byleth, everything’s great here! Yet another lord decided that he so adores the colour of my hair and my eyes and hey, could I just ask you whether he would be able to get preferential treatment when it comes to trading with the former Faerghan houses? _Hilda pouted and blew her fringe out of her eyes. _Hi Claude, how’s it going in Almyra? Nice of you to tell me that you were of Almyran noble blood and that you’d be leaving us all to go wrangle another country into some kind of order!_

It was no use. The only letter she had enjoyed writing was to congratulate Lorenz and Marianne on their engagement and to let them know how much she was looking forward to the wedding. Her room was in complete disarray, so Hilda rose from her bed and gathered the papers up, being careful to put the one to Lorenz and Marianne aside, and tossed them in the fire. She went over to her crafting table and started putting the various jewellery components away. There was one finished piece on the desk — a necklace that featured a flower in a bottle as its centrepiece. Hilda picked it up, twisting the cord between her finger and thumb, and sat down by the fire to think. She cracked open a bottle of wine, and in the morning, with a fuzzy head and a mouth that tasted like the asscrack of a wyvern, she knew exactly what she needed to do.

***

“I’m going on a journey.”

Holst sat aghast at the dinner table, soup slopping back into the bowl from the spoon that was halfway to his mouth. “I’m sorry, you’re _what?”_

“I said, brother, I’m going on a journey.” Hilda rolled her eyes. “Honestly, it’s not that hard to grasp.”

“But I’ve spent all winter trying to make matches for you — which was at _your request, might I add?” _Holst sputtered, spoon still dangling precariously from his hand. “What am I going to tell them all now?!”

Hilda shrugged, dabbed delicately at her mouth with her napkin, and rose to leave the table. “Whatever you want, Holst. Tell them I’ve been struck down by illness, or that I’ve gone mad. The ravages of war were just too much for me to handle, even two years down the line!” Looking at Holst, his mouth still agape, her gaze softened as she tried to find the right words. “Look, Holst, I just… I need this, okay? I need to find my own path. You’ve always had one, whether you wanted it or not. And now… now that Fódlan’s united, and that the order of things is different, I don’t need to be a good little wife and actually, I don’t want to be. I realise that now. I’m sorry.”

As she turned and walked out of the dining room, she heard a spoon clatter to the floor and a resounding “_Ughhhhhh…” _and she couldn’t help but giggle.

***

The following morning, Hilda packed everything she thought she might need into one modestly sized pack — she had learned well during the war — and headed down to the stables. A loud screech emanated from the end of the paddock and Hilda ran over with a grin. “Aww, Lilah baby, did you miss your mommy?” she cooed at the copper wyvern, who leaned down and immediately started nuzzling against her shoulder. “We went out flying a few days ago, you know? It’s not been that long, I swear.”

“Miss Hilda!”

Hilda turned to see Quentin, the house quartermaster, running towards her, two axes strapped to his back. “Miss Hilda, you almost forgot your weapon!” He came suddenly to a stop, bending over double. Hilda noticed the two weapons on his back — Freikugel was one, and was joined by a silver axe with roses etched into the handle.“You can never be too careful, miss,” he said once he had caught his breath. “There’s bandits out there still, and word from the Queen is that there are still a few of those Agarthan cultists out there, too.” He carefully took the axes from their holsters and held them out to Hilda. “I thought you might require both, Miss Hilda.”

Freikugel… It still pulsed grotesquely, even after Nemesis and his nightmarish shades of the past were defeated. If Hilda was honest with herself (as she often was), she’d rather it was locked away in a vault somewhere with the rest of the Heroes’ Relics where it could never be seen again. “I don’t recognise the other axe, Quentin — where did that come from?” She took it from him, testing the weight. It was perfectly balanced.“It’s beautiful,” she breathed, admiring the intricate detailing along the wood.

“It’s a gift from Master Holst, miss,” Quentin said. “He had been holding onto it until your wedding day, but thought it might benefit you more now.”

“Well he got that right…” Hilda murmured. “Tell Holst to keep hold of Freikugel. Although I don’t think we’ll be seeing an Almyran invasion any time soon, I’d feel better knowing that it was defending the homestead. I’ll be fine with this one. Thanks so much, Quentin!” She winked and holstered the weapon to her back.

Quentin waited, hesitating, before throwing his arms around Hilda in an extremely unfamiliar manner, eliciting a gasp. “We’ll miss you here, Miss Hilda. You were like a daughter to us all, you know? With your parents gone all these years… Just take care out there, will you?”

“Oh, Quentin…” she said softly, returning his embrace. “I won’t be gone forever. Just for a little while, okay? I promise, I’ll keep my new axe nice and sharp… I’ll call it Dortmund. I think that sounds nice.” They parted, and Hilda swore she saw Quentin surreptitiously wipe a tear from his eye as she got on her wyvern and set off in search of adventures unknown.

***

“Well… this _sucks! _Ugh!” Hilda panted, swinging her axe at the bandit charging towards her. She cut him down with one swift swipe before turning to the next and doing it all again. She was exhausted. The bandits had set upon her camp just after midnight in an attempt to steal Lilah, and, while the wyvern had managed to fly away to safety, Hilda bore the brunt of their anger and frustration. Covered in blood, she kept hacking away, but she couldn’t keep it up for much longer.

Except… didn’t she recognise that flash of red hair in the distance?

“CHAAAAAAAAARGE!”

Like a knight from her childhood fairy tales, Leonie came galloping into the battle on her trusty steed, flanked by a battalion of her fellow mercenaries. They saw off the rest of the bandits in short order, and when it was over, Hilda collapsed onto the floor in relief. “Oh, Leonie, my saviour…” she said, panting heavily. Leonie jumped off her horse and plopped down beside her, taking her hand. “I recognised the whining a mile off. And Lilah flew up to us without you on her back, so I knew something was wrong.” True enough, the wyvern had followed Leonie’s band of mercenaries back to the campsite.

“Clever girl!” Hilda said, letting Leonie pull her up into a sitting position. “That was pretty stupid of me. I should have just pressed onto the next village, but the stars were really beautiful tonight and I wanted to spend the night outdoors.”

“That’s not like you,” Leonie said, raising an eyebrow. “Wait, you’re not a Slitherer, are you?”

Gasping dramatically, Hilda gave Leonie a shove, causing the other woman to break out in peals of laughter. “How _dare _you, Leonie Pinelli, beloved classmate of mine! Would a Slitherer know that you once came running to my dormitory room, terrified that you were in love with Sylvain because you had one singular naughty dream about him?”

“Ha, I guess not,” Leonie cackled. “Oh, man, I remember that. It was terrifying. Sylvain… gross. I’m so glad he found true love in the arms of Fraldarius the Grouch and did all of us a favour, really. The world is a much better place without Gautier in the dating pool.” Digging in her pouch, Leonie pulled out a hipflask and took a swig, before passing it to Hilda. “So really, what does bring the venerable Lady Goneril out into the wilds?”

Hilda took a drink and felt the honeyed liquor burn as it travelled down her throat, filling her with warmth. “I’m trying to find myself. It sounds silly, I know, but I went home, and I thought I’d find a husband and just… while my life away, but I realised that I needed more. I wanted more,” she said, looking up at the stars. “So I guess I’m on the road to figure out what that ‘more’ is. It’s definitely not getting attacked by bandits in the middle of the night, that’s for sure.” She looked down at the blood staining her clothing and her body and shuddered. “A bath would definitely qualify right now.”

Leonie sprang up and gave Hilda a helping hand up. “Lucky for you, we’re not far from the nearest village after all. There’s an inn with a good stable there, so you can get cleaned up and get some rest. What do you think?”

“Honestly Leonie, I think that sounds like heaven,” Hilda sighed. “Lead the way.”

***

True to Leonie’s word, the village was just a few miles away from where Hilda had camped, and the band made swift progress on their horses and wyverns. The main road through the centre of the village bore no signs of life, but a warm glow was coming from a large building towards the end of it. A sign hung from its side. “The Silver Gauntlet,” Hilda whispered, hopping down off Lilah and taking her reins in hand to lead her down the path.

“Yeah, that’s the one,” Leonie replied. “It’s a nice little place, we stop here often.”

Just as the group approached the inn, the door suddenly swung open and two drunks flew through it as if they’d been struck into the air by some beast. “AND STAY OUT!” a voice bellowed. In the dim candlelight from the lanterns outside, Hilda caught a flash of golden hair in the door frame before the door slammed shut and the drunks hobbled on their way. “Huh, busy night in this village,” Hilda mused. “Shall we go in?”

“Yeah, let us just put the horses in the stable. I can take Lilah too if you want to head in. Maya usually has the stables kitted out for travellers who arrive late at night,” Leonie said, and took the reins from Hilda. “Go on, I’ll be right behind you.”

“Hmm… now where do I know the name Maya from…” Hilda muttered to herself, pushing the door open. “Hi, is anyone—AH!” she squealed as she felt herself being enveloped by strong, muscular arms and lifted in the air.

“Hilda! You never told me you were going to visit!”

“Raphael!”

He put her back down gently, and bashfully raised a hand to the back of his head. “Yep, it’s me! This is my family’s place!” Raphael said, and Hilda felt a rush of warmth flow through her. Seeing two of her former Golden Deer classmates in the same night was certainly more than a coincidence — it must have been fate that brought them together. Usually, Hilda didn’t buy into that, but seeing as she was exhausted and covered in blood, it seemed like a worthy explanation. “So, what are you doing here, Hilda, and why are you all bloody?”

“Oh, uh…” she said, looking down at her stained clothes. “Bandits on the road. Leonie and her mercs found me and saved my ass, to be honest. I wasn’t being careful enough. Leonie said that there was a really good inn nearby and so, here we are. She’s just putting the horses and my wyvern into the stable.”

Raphael moved behind the bar and hefted a ledger onto the surface, noted something down, before returning it to its place. “Okay, so room and board for everyone then. I guess you’ll want a bath, too. My little sister Maya’s asleep, so I can’t promise that it’ll be the warmest — I’m still practising my fire spells, but I’m getting better at them!” He beamed at her and for the first time in a long time, Hilda felt like things were on the up. “Come on, I’ll show you to your room. We’re pretty empty tonight so you can have a room to yourself.”

He led her up the stairs to a small, but cosy room with a bed, a fireplace that had already been laid, and a desk. A towel already sat on the end of the bed and he sat the key for the room on top of it. With a taper, Raphael lit the fire and went off in search of a bathtub. A few minutes later, he came up with the tub hefted over one shoulder and three buckets full of water in his other hand, and laid them down carefully in front of the fire. He filled the tub, then held his hands out in front of him, screwing up his face in concentration. Sure enough, the water within began to steam. He dipped a finger into the tub to test the temperature, nodded, and rose to his feet.

Hilda had forgotten just how tall Raphael was. She knew she was pretty short, even with heeled boots on, but he positively towered over her. She’d never found it unnerving though — it was always vaguely comforting, given Raphael’s gentle nature. “Well, that should do it,” he said, reaching over to ruffle her hair. “See you tomorrow!” He closed the door gently behind him and Hilda heard the tell-tale thuds she had heard all the way throughout her time at Garreg Mach as he bounded down the stairs.

“Well… some things never change,” she said with a smile. She hefted her pack and her axe onto the floor, stripped off her clothes and sank into the tub, moaning with satisfaction as the water began to soothe the aches and pains of battle. She gazed over the side of the tub towards the fire and noticed Raphael had left a small bar of soap for her. “Lavender, ooh!” She took ample time to wash away the grime — another thing that had never changed was Hilda’s dislike of getting all sweaty on the battlefield — and stayed in the tub until it started to get cold. She towelled off, snuggled down under the covers and went out like a light.

***

When Hilda finally rose in the morning, the sun had been up for a good few hours and shone brightly into the room. She felt refreshed and ready to face the day. Rummaging through her pack, she found a clean outfit and got dressed, brushed her hair and tied it up in her usual style, dabbed a little bit of blush onto her cheeks and some perfume behind her ears, and declared herself fit to face the world. She went to open the door, before turning back and eyeing up her pack. “Even though it’s Raphael’s inn, I’d better make sure Dortmund is out of sight…” she said to herself, and shoved the axe and the pack underneath the bed. As she did, a necklace tumbled out of the pack — the one that she had been working on when she realised that she wanted to go travelling. She put it on and took a quick glance in the mirror. Deciding that it was the perfect complement to her outfit, she nodded to herself and skipped out of the door, locking it behind her.

Downstairs, Leonie and her company were already dining at a large table towards the back of the main room, washing down crispy rashers of bacon and potato hash with mugs of ale. Hilda took a seat next to Leonie, eyeing up her flagon. “Are you seriously drinking this early in the morning?”

“Hilda, it’s basically brunch. We slept in _good _last night. Fighting bandits is hard work!” Leonie speared a morsel of potato and shoved it into her mouth. “Hey, Maya!” she said, mouth full. “Hilda’s ready for some breakfast!”

“Say it, don’t spray it, Pinelli…” Hilda whined. A petite, yet stocky girl with a head full of long, blonde curls came bustling towards them, notepad in hand. “Hi Hilda! I’m Maya, Raphael’s sister. What can I get you for breakfast this morning? There’s either bacon and potato hash, porridge and fresh fruit, or I’ve got some crumpets if you’d prefer something lighter,” she said, smiling.

Hilda hummed, thinking it over. “Porridge and fruit sounds lovely, thank you. And it’s so nice to finally meet you! Raphael talked a lot about you at the Academy — it feels like we’ve known you for years!”

Maya blushed, jotting Hilda’s choice down on her notepad. “My brother’s too kind — I’m sure he’s exaggerated a lot of those stories. What would you like to drink? I know Leonie and her company are keen on ale at most times of the day but I have a variety of teas if you’d prefer? We’ve got bergamot, ginger, rose petal…”

“Rose petal would be perfect, thanks Maya!” Hilda said, winking. Maya noted it down and headed back into the kitchen. A few minutes later, she came back with a veritable feast — a huge bowl of steaming hot porridge, complete with little jars of honey and jam, a plentiful platter of fresh fruit including strawberries, blueberries, plums and pomegranates, and a pot of tea that would have suited three people, let alone just Hilda. Upon noticing Hilda’s jaw drop at the sheer amount of food, Maya giggled. “Yeah, you can tell this is a Kirsten establishment, huh?”

Hilda was about to protest, but her stomach began gurgling, so maybe she was hungrier than she thought. “It looks absolutely delicious! I’ll do my best, I swear.” Just as she was about to tuck in, she heard a small gasp from Maya. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, it’s just…” Maya dug underneath the collar of her shirt and brought out a necklace that was almost a dead match to the one Hilda was wearing. “The one you’re wearing is just like the one that you made for me, for my birthday! Oh, I was so pleased when Raphael gave it to me,” she said, beaming. “I’ve worn it almost every day since. You have a real eye for this kind of stuff!”

“I guess so. I just really like making jewellery. It’s very relaxing, and it means I get some cute accessories at the end of it,” Hilda said, fiddling with her own necklace. “I’d be happy to make you something new, if you’d like.”

“You really mean it?!” Maya gushed, clutching her notepad to her chest. “That would be amazing, thank you so much!” She stood there for a moment before her eyes widened and she turned beet red. “Ohhhh, I’ve kept you too long, your breakfast is going to go cold! I’ll leave you to it, thankyouuuuuuu!” she said hurriedly and dashed off in the direction of the kitchen.

Hilda put a spoonful of porridge in her mouth and closed her eyes in satisfaction. It was truly delicious and flavoured with just a hint of cinnamon. She finally understood where Raphael’s love of food had been born — and she was more than happy to indulge herself.

***

By contrast to when Hilda first arrived, the village was positively bustling by the afternoon. Sitting on a main road that connected Fhirdiad and Derdriu meant that it saw plenty of traders pass through and several caravans had set up shop, looking to earn some extra coin. Leonie and her company had already left in search of their next job — Hilda understood that Raphael took care of most minor problems with bandits and ruffians around the village, from what Leonie was saying — and so that meant a day of figuring out where to go next.

“It would be nice to actually catch up properly with Raphael, and I _did _tell Maya I’d make her a new accessory, so maybe I’ll stay here for a few more days before I move on. What do you think, Lilah?” The wyvern batted Hilda gently with her claws as her owner continued to scratch her belly, urging her to continue. “I’m going to take that as a yes,” Hilda laughed, and tossed a couple of raw steaks in the air for Lilah to guzzle down.

With her wyvern fed, she went to check out what the caravans had to offer. Most of them were selling produce, but a couple of them had materials that Hilda could wrangle into something pretty, so she parted with a few gold and headed back to the inn. By now, Raphael was awake and busy behind the bar, chatting to a few regulars and pulling pints. As soon as he noticed Hilda walk in, a huge grin broke out across his features and he politely excused himself from the other guests. “Hey, sleep okay last night? Can I get you a drink?” he asked, gesturing to the nearest bar stool.

“Yeah, why not? I’ll take whatever wine you’ve got,” Hilda said, hopping up onto the stool.

Raphael pulled a bottle of something red out and poured her a glass. He pushed it over and she took a sip. Elderberry, or close enough to it. Either way, it wasn’t bad. “What brings you out here then, Hilda? Not that it’s not great to see you, but I thought you were keeping busy in Goneril territory.”

“I wish,” Hilda sighed, swirling the wine around in her glass. “Now that all the rebuilding’s done, I got bored. I wanted to get out, see the world after the war! Although I’ve not really gone further than the Alliance so far. Eventually I was planning on heading for Enbarr to see Byleth, before coming back for Lorenz and Marianne’s wedding — you got an invitation, right?”

“Of course I did!” Raphael beamed. “I’m looking forward to seeing everyone there. I hope they all said yes — and I’m sure Lorenz will put on a feast like no other!”

Hilda giggled and took another sip of her wine. “It’s not like the cooking here is bad, Raphael — you get a feast pretty much every day courtesy of your sister!”

“I know, but there’ll be all kinds of meats and cakes and fancy stuff that we just don’t get here…” Raphael said dreamily. “It’s going to be real good. But anyway, I’m glad you decided to stop by here, even if it wasn’t under the best of circumstances. I’ve been back here about six months now, helping Maya out… it’s nice to be home.”

“Oh yeah, I never asked what brought you back here. Last time I heard from you, you were a knight, right?”

Raphael sighed heavily. “Yeah, I was. But even though that’s what I trained for at the Academy, it just didn’t feel right. I spent half the time just stood around on guard.” He motioned to Hilda’s almost-empty glass, and Hilda nodded for a refill. “So, I decided to quit. I mean, Lord Henry was real nice about it. He suggested I come back home and help out with the inn, and I did, and it’s been great!” he said, topping up the glass and pouring a pint of ale out for himself. “I get to see my little sister every day, I get to eat delicious food, I can train as much as I want… I’ve pretty much got it made!”

“I’m so glad, Raphael,” Hilda said, smiling, and it was true — she really was pleased for him. “I can’t help but be a little jealous though. I’m still trying to figure out where I belong.”

“Well, if you wanted to stay here for a little while, you’re more than welcome to.” Raphael took a deep drag of his ale. “There’s always something going on in the village, and if you wanted to help out with the hunting, I’d appreciate it. What do you say?”

“I’ll drink to that!” Hilda said, and they tapped their glasses together. “Cheers!”

***

Sitting at the desk in her room, Hilda pieced together feathers and semi-precious stones. This time, she was making Maya a hair clip. After a few mealtimes, she’d noticed that the younger Kirsten had a habit of constantly tucking her curls behind her ears and they always fell back into her face a few minutes later anyway, so a practical, yet elegant clip would be the perfect solution. She’d been staying at the inn for about two weeks so far, and had gotten into a comfortable routine already. Each morning, she rose early for breakfast, before heading out with Raphael to either hunt game for the evening meals or to train. Once they returned, Raphael would take their kills to the butcher if they’d been out hunting, and Hilda put Lilah, who was ecstatic to be taken out flying every day, back in the stables. Then, after a hearty lunch, she’d take a walk out beyond the village to gather materials. On her return, she retired to her room, where she worked on her accessories or wrote letters.

Hilda had sent a letter to Claude a week ago, telling him all about her journey and her little holiday at the inn, and found a reply shoved under her door when she’d returned from her earlier outing. It was a typically Claude response — it said very little about what he was doing in Almyra, but asked plenty of questions about what was going on in the Alliance. It finished with _“Oh, and Hilda… get it, girl! Seriously, Raphael’s a great guy.” _Hilda had scoffed at that part — Claude didn’t know what he was talking about. There was nothing _romantic _going on between her and Raphael. Sure, it was nice to hang out with him again. It was just like old times! But her quest for a husband was extremely postponed. Besides, Raphael was more like a brother, albeit a very muscular brother, who was kind, and sweet, and would do anything for anyone. That was all.

As she cursed Claude in her head, she finished off tying all the elements for the clip together. Hilda had purposefully sought elements that would ensure it matched the necklace she’d made for Maya all that time ago, using blue feathers and green stones so that the hues complemented the flowers in the necklace. She lightly coated it in a resin so it wouldn’t fray, and left it on the desk to dry. “Now that’s done, I think it’s time for a bath…” she said to herself, leaning back in her chair and stretching her arms up in the air.

The inn had a small bathhouse attached to it, which is where Raphael had grabbed the tub from on her first night there. Maya had scolded him for removing it — following a flood after a couple’s particularly rambunctious lovemaking session in their room, baths were relegated to the bathhouse only — so Hilda had no option but to head out and bathe with the rest of the guests. In fairness, it had been fairly quiet while Hilda had been staying. Lots of the inn’s guests were local residents who came along to just dine or drink, so Hilda had been the only person in there this week, and she tended to bathe late anyway. She grabbed a towel and the bar of lavender soap that Raphael had left in her room the first night and headed down.

From the outside, it didn’t seem like there was anyone else in the bathhouse, so Hilda pumped her fist quietly in triumph and opened the door, before smacking straight into a very damp, broad, muscular and _naked _chest. “Oh, sorry, Hilda! Didn’t realise anyone else was there! You heading in for a bath?” Raphael boomed. Hilda backed up slightly and looked up at the wall of muscle in front of her. Raphael stood before her in nothing but a towel, and she couldn’t help but notice that he was practically glistening in the low candlelight emanating from the bathhouse. Each and every one of his frankly astonishing abs was perfectly defined in the light, and she watched as a droplet of water trailed its way down them and underneath the towel that was barely being held in place…

She yelped and jumped out of the way. “T-that’s okay Raphael! I should have been more careful!” she stuttered, looking away. “I’ll see you in a bit, okay!” She let Raphael walk past towards his room and dove into the bathhouse, shutting the door behind her. “Hilda… it’s not like you haven’t already seen him partially clothed. I mean, think about the monastery, which also had a smallish bathhouse, or on the battlefield in that ridiculous brawler’s get up…” she said, leaning against the door. “Ughhhhh…”

After the quickest bath in her life, she headed upstairs to the sanctuary of her room and locked the door shut before getting into bed. A good night’s sleep would solve everything. Except several hours later, Hilda found herself replaying the evening’s events over and over in her mind and imagining new scenarios, which mostly ended up with the two of them fucking against the bathhouse wall. If she was being truly honest with herself, it wasn’t strictly the first time she’d thought of Raphael that way. Back at the Academy, she’d thought about plenty of the boys there late at night with nothing but her hand at her disposal. But those were just fantasies — they were never real, and they never would be.

Later, when she came, she did so with her knuckles between her teeth to stop herself crying out Raphael’s name.

***

It wasn’t that things had changed dramatically between her and Raphael, but after that night, Hilda definitely began to notice certain things a lot more. Like the stretch of his shirt across his broad, muscular back. How he picked up barrels like they were pillows. The way the sun caught his curls during their training sessions like a halo. “It’s just because you haven’t dated anyone in a long time, and because all the guys you met at court were assholes,” Hilda told herself while two of the village kids clambered all over him like they were climbing a tree. The way they sat on his biceps like branches was so adorable it was giving her palpitations, so she decided she needed a distraction.

Back at the inn, Maya had finished cleaning up after breakfast and was going through the books. Hilda placed the hair clip she had made on top of the ledger with a soft “Surprise!” and stood back. Maya picked it up, turning it over in her hand. Suddenly, Hilda found herself being tackled by the smaller Kirsten, who let out a muffled, teary “IT’S SO BEAUTIFUL” into her chest. “Hey, you’re welcome,” Hilda said, patting Maya’s head. “Why don’t we put it on, huh?” She pulled a hairbrush from her bag and sat Maya down on the barstool, brushing her messy curls until they were soft, bouncy waves. Pulling back a section of hair, Hilda put it into a braid, tied it off, and pinned it back with the clip. “Go have a look in the mirror,” she said, and Maya bounced off towards the bathroom.

“HILDA, YOU’RE A GENIUS!” Maya cried, dashing back into the dining room to engulf Hilda in yet another hug. “This is one of the nicest things anyone’s ever done for me! And it’s so elegant! I feel like I should be at a ball in the capital with this in my hair,” she said, letting go and twirling a strand of blonde between her fingers. “Seriously, you’re amazing at this!”

Throughout the day, Maya received dozens of compliments from the villagers, with Raphael declaring her new look “the most beautiful hairstyle for the most beautiful sister!” She cornered Hilda on her way up to bed, and said “Listen, Hilda. I have had at least ten ladies ask me where I got this, and the accompanying necklace, because they want to buy one. I think we could have a real venture on our hands here.”

“I dunno…” Hilda shrugged. “I know my accessories are nice, but I just make them for fun. I suppose I could sell a few and see what happens — I’ve been making some others while I’ve been here.”

“Give me a few to sell, and I’ll take your room and board out of the cost, plus 20 percent for handling the transaction,” Maya said, her eyes gleaming. “The rest is yours — what do you say?”

Hilda put a finger to her lips and thought about it for a second, before nodding and holding out her hand to shake on it. “You got a deal.” She went up to her room and picked out a few of the pieces she’d been working on — a couple of other hair clips, a bracelet, and a few necklaces — and brought them down for Maya to sell the next day. Admittedly, she was curious to see how well they’d do.

***

At the end of the next day, Maya triumphantly slammed a bag of gold down in front of Hilda. “All of them sold,” she said, grinning. “I made more money today than I’ve made all week. Of course, you’re getting most of those profits, but still.” She headed over to the bar, picked up a bottle of wine and two glasses and sat down opposite Hilda, pouring them both a drink. “Hilda, you have a real talent. Like, really. You could make a lot of money out of this. Hell, _we _could make a lot of money out of this.”

Gold spilled out of the purse onto the table. Hilda counted it up, put it back in the purse, took a long, deep drag of her wine and leaned back in her chair. “Holy shit, Maya. That’s a lot of gold for a few bits of jewellery. How much were you selling them for?”

Maya shook her head. “Not important. Look, you’ve been here a few weeks now. How long are you planning on sticking around?”

Hilda fiddled awkwardly with her wine glass. “I don’t know. But… this place has felt more like home than anywhere else has lately. I wasn’t sure where to go next.”

“Lorenz and Marianne’s wedding is in two months, right? Stay here until then, and I’ll give you a proper workroom. I’ll sell on your behalf while I’m working the inn, and you can see how it goes. If it’s profitable, then maybe you could consider opening up a shop. And I’d daresay it’s going to be profitable.” Maya topped up their glasses, and Hilda could see her positively buzzing with excitement. “What do you say?”

Hilda paused for a moment and picked up the bag of gold, testing its weight in her palm. Money wasn’t really an object, but if people liked her work, then… what was the harm? “Okay. Let’s do it.”

They shook on it, and Maya called Raphael over to bring them another bottle of wine. “What’s with the celebration, ladies?”

“We’re starting a brand new business,” Maya declared. “Hilda’s going to stick around here for another couple of months and we’re going to sell her accessories right here in the inn. We are going to make a _lot _of money.”

“Oh, that’s great!” Raphael said, putting the bottle down on the table. “You’re amazing at it, Hilda. And I gotta say, I’m excited you’re staying a while longer. Can’t lose my best sparring partner now!”

“Yeah, I’m excited too!” Hilda said, and maybe it was the alcohol, but she felt a flush in her cheeks and a warmth within in her chest that whispered _you’re home now_.

***

“Just a little to the left, big guy!”

“Hup! There we go. Okay, what do you think?”

“Looking good… Maya, what do you reckon?”

“I love it!”

Raphael clambered down the ladder and dusted his hands off, admiring his handiwork. “The Silver Gauntlet and Valentine Accessories. Sounds good to me.”

Hanging from below the inn’s gauntlet-shaped sign was a banner, hand-drawn by Maya, who had an eye for art herself. With that, they were officially in business. Hilda had been buying out stock from traders left, right and centre to ensure she had enough basic materials to keep going for the next two months, and Raphael and Maya had been joining her whenever they could to gather natural materials like stones, feathers, flowers and even a few animal bones to create unique pieces.

On one gathering session, Raphael had picked a bunch of forget-me-nots, went to sniff them, and promptly sneezed them all away. The next time, he had picked sweet peas, which were far too big for Hilda’s plans. “Aww, but they’re so pretty!” he said, clutching a bunch in his hands. “Can’t we use them for something?”

“I guess they might look nice in vases on the tables? Or you could put them in the rooms?” Hilda said, putting her own materials into her basket.

“Or I could do this!” He picked a light purple flower from the bunch and threaded it into Hilda’s hair. “There you go. It suits you, Hilda!” he grinned. “You got everything you need? Do you want me to carry anything?”

“S-sure, Raphael, can you take my basket?” she said, a blush creeping across her cheeks. “Let’s head back to the inn and get on with things, shall we?”

Although she didn’t use the flower in her hair for a piece, she pressed it and kept it hidden within the pages of her notebook.

***

“Hey, Hilda. Wanna go training?”

Hilda opened the door to see Raphael stood outside, clutching his gauntlets. Although they’d refused to take commissions during the trial period, she’d been working non-stop over the past month to ensure they had a plentiful supply of accessories to sell each day. They’d gone like hotcakes, the stock they’d set aside each day selling out in hours. Maya was thrilled — the accessories were pulling in far more gold than the inn had in months. But Hilda was starting to lose focus, and a sparring session would be the perfect thing to wake her up again.

“Sure, let’s do it. Training weapons or the real deal today?” Raphael held up his shining silver gauntlets in answer. “Right, Dortmund it is. Although I think I’ll leave the wyvern behind. Lilah will be devastated,” she said, sticking her tongue out. “I need a few to tidy up, so I’ll meet you out there?”

“‘Kay, see you down there in a bit!” The now familiar thud-thud-thud down the stairs followed, and Hilda took a minute to put what she was working on in a safe place. She quickly changed into her training tunic and leggings, bent down and pulled her axe from underneath the bed. “Okay, Hilda. It’s just training. Juuuuuuust training.” She groaned and stood up, before steeling herself to head out of the door.

When she got down to the field where they typically sparred, Raphael was already running through his warm-up exercises. It was a hot summer’s day and his shirt was clinging to his skin with sweat. “Okay, let’s get this over with before I die from frustration,” Hilda muttered to herself before waving over to Raphael. He waved back, before pulling his shirt off and picking his gauntlets up. “Hey, no fair, Raph!” Hilda said as she approached. “Now I gotta pull my punches because we’re playing with the real toys and you’re not wearing anything that might protect you!”

“Eh,” Raphael shrugged. “I figure it gives me more incentive to avoid your swings. Besides, I managed a good Heal spell throughout the war.” Hilda glared at him disapprovingly. “I’ll be fine! I promise!”

“Fiiiiiine,” she sighed, hefting her axe over her shoulder. “What’s the win condition?”

“First to the ground. You ready, Goneril?”

“Born ready, Kirsten. Hah!”

Hilda lunged forward with Dortmund, but Raphael countered her swing perfectly with his gauntlets, catching the edge between his blades. He forced Hilda back, causing her to stagger, but she quickly found her ground again. Instead of going in for the kill again, she waited for him to make a move, but Raphael was clearly on the defensive today, only dancing close enough to encourage Hilda into striking. Despite his bulk, Raphael was swift, and had only grown more so after the war — his job as de facto bouncer at the inn required him to dodge a lot more punches than throw them. “What, is that all you got?” he taunted, and Hilda dashed forward on the offence. She feinted at the last moment, sweeping down and using the butt of the axe to swipe Raphael’s feet from under him. He crashed to the ground in defeat.

Before Hilda could get too carried away with her victory dance, a hand stretched up from the ground and pulled her down, causing her to land right on top of Raphael. “Hey, what was that for? I won!” Hilda spluttered, her axe clattering to the side. Honey-coloured eyes met hers and Hilda felt her heart skip a beat. “Um, I guess I’m probably squishing you, huh?” she babbled, but made no move to get up. Raphael’s hand moved to brush a stray lock of hair from her face, cupping her cheek. She leaned into it, biting her lower lip in anticipation.

“Miss Hilda!”

Hilda shot up instantly, spinning around to see who had called her. One of the Goneril soldiers stood a few feet away in full plate. He bowed as Hilda dashed over to speak to him. “I’m sorry to interrupt your journey away from the territory, but I bring bad news, I’m afraid. Slitherers attacked Goneril and Lord Holst was badly injured.”

“Is-is he alright?” Hilda gasped. “What happened to the Slitherers?”

“We took care of them, and Lord Holst is stable, but our position is weakened. If word gets back to any remaining Slitherers…”

“You need me home,” Hilda said with a heavy heart. “Okay. I’ll get packed up and I’ll fly on back with you. Can you give me some time to say goodbye to everyone?”

“Of course, Miss Hilda. We’re just outside of the village, so we’ll see you shortly.” The soldier bowed and took his leave.

Hilda felt her eyes well up with tears. She knew what was needed of her — as a noble, she was taught to do whatever her duty required — but it didn’t make it sting any less. Suddenly, she felt strong, gentle arms wrap around her, enveloping her in warmth. She looked up at Raphael, who brushed the tears from her cheeks before leaning down and capturing her lips in a tender kiss. She reached up and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in deeper. She wanted to drown in Raphael’s kiss, to sink into the depths of his affection and never come back to the surface, but she couldn’t let herself give in. Not yet. She pulled back and gave Raphael a sad smile. “You got some timing, Raph,” she said weakly, stepping away.

“Well, I couldn’t let you go without letting you know how I feel,” he said, picking up her axe and handing it to her. “But I’ll see you at the wedding, won’t I? You can’t miss the cakes.”

“Of course you will. Holst will be fine in a month, I’m sure of it.” She clutched her axe tightly. “Walk me back to the inn?”

Raphael smiled and held out his hand. Hilda laced her fingers with his and they ambled back towards the village, pretending as if they didn’t have a care in the world.

***

She strode into Holst’s bedchambers with no regard for the nurses, who wheedled and whined that the lord needed to rest without being disturbed. Her brother, the stalwart guardian of the Throat, lay broken and battered. She grabbed a chair from the small dining table by the fire, shoved it by the bed and plonked herself down. “What are we gonna do with you, Hol?” she said, grasping his limp hand between hers. “You weren’t supposed to go and get yourself almost killed, you’re all I’ve got.” She rubbed her thumb over his bruised knuckles. “Well, maybe not any more, but you’ll always be my only big brother, so don’t go anywhere, okay?”

“What… do you mean by ‘not any more’?” Holst coughed, cracking open a pale blue eye.

“Um.” Hilda poured a glass of water and encouraged Holst to take gentle sips before setting back down on the bedside. “I miiiiiiight have found someone I really like? And also started my own business?”

“Well, you didn’t mention that in any of your letters home.” Holst pushed himself up, groaning with the exertion. Hilda rushed to prop him up with pillows, catching an eyeful of the bandages wrapped around almost his entire torso. “Let me guess… jewellery?”

She nodded and sat back. “Goddess, Holst. What did the Slitherers _do _to you?”

“Agarthan poison. Very effective as it turns out. The healers were lucky — one of the bastards was carrying a vial of the right antitoxin so they applied it before it could do too much damage.” Holst attempted to reach for the glass of water and winced with pain. Hilda held it to his lips instead, making sure he didn’t gulp it all down too quickly. “But you’re avoiding, little sister.”

“Well, you need to rest, so I can’t be getting you too overexcited.” Holst raised an eyebrow, fixing her with the same piercing glare that had been getting her to spill her guts since they were tiny. “Raphael, one of my former classmates. He’s a war hero, you know.”

“And a commoner,” Holst retorted. “But I suppose things are different now.” He coughed again before collapsing back against the pillows and turned to Hilda. “You’re your own person, Hilda. You’re a Goneril, yes, but you’re _you. _And… and if you love him, then that is enough.”

“Thanks, Hol. That means a lot coming from you,” she said softly, leaning over to brush Holst’s hair from out of his eyes. “I gotta admit, I shouldn’t have been, but I was a little scared you’d come out with something about furthering the bloodline, seeing as you probably wouldn’t be.”

“Well, Lorelai did finally said yes,” he said, smiling as broadly as he could. “Turns out this whole new world order is good for something after all.” Holst yawned, and his eyes began to droop shut. Hilda helped him lie back down and pulled the quilt back over him, leaving him to rest. After all, Lorelai von Daphnel, who had sworn off marriage _forever _due to her lack of Crest, had finally accepted her brother’s relentless wooing and agreed to marry him. She had some letters to write.

***

Sitting at her desk, Hilda grabbed a quill and a fresh sheet of paper and began to scribble. _Hey Claude, how are things? Big news, my brother’s getting married. Okay, he got himself almost killed, but I guess that means Lorelai couldn’t really say no. Fingers crossed I’ll get some really cute nieces and nephews! I’m looking forward to seeing you and Byleth at the wedding. You had BETTER make it._

She made her way down the list, writing missives to Byleth, Lorenz, Marianne and Ignatz, and even one to Sylvain and Felix, who had announced that they were finally joining their two territories together in matrimony. When it came to the last one, she hesitated. Eventually, she scrawled a few paragraphs before tossing it back onto the desk.

_Hey Raph, how are things? I made it home okay, but Holst’s in bad shape. I really won’t be going anywhere until the wedding. I hope the shop is doing okay. I made plenty of extra pieces, so Maya should be able to keep going._

_It’s stupid — I’ve been home for a few hours and I already miss you. I wish we’d had more time._

<strike> _I miss you._ </strike>

<strike> _I need you._ </strike>

<strike> _I love you. I think._ </strike>

_I’ll see you at the wedding, big guy. Don’t eat all the cake._

***

When Hilda finally arrived at the Gloucester mansion the night before the wedding, she bumped into Ignatz, who was putting his horse in the stable. “Hilda! How lovely to see you!” he said, embracing her.

“You too, Ignatz. It’s so good to finally have everyone back together under one roof!” she replied. “Do you know if anyone else has arrived yet?”

“You mean, if Raphael’s arrived yet,” he chuckled. “He’s my best friend, Hilda, we write to each other all the time. No, he’s not arriving until the morning.” Ignatz took the saddlebags off his horse and hefted them onto his shoulder. “Do you need a hand with any of your belongings, Hilda?”

She shook her head and picked up her pack. “I’m fine, but thanks for asking. Anyway, what have you been up to? Are you going to paint Lorenz and Marianne while you’re here?”

“I did bring my sketchbook…” Ignatz said, and the two chatted merrily on their way up to the great hall.

After they were announced, Hilda took two steps into the room before being tackled by not one, but two royal persons. “HILDAAAAAA, my friend!” She pushed Claude away and slung her arms around Byleth. “How could you betray me like that, Hil? How can you like my wife better? I’m supposed to be your best friend! I’m hurt.” He pouted, and Hilda stuck her tongue out at him.

“Your wife’s more cuddly. How have you been, anyway?”

“Pretty good, if you ignore the morning sickness,” Byleth said, pulling back. Hilda looked down at the slight swell of Byleth’s usually impressively flat stomach, looked back up at her face, then looked over at Claude. He winked, and Hilda shrieked with joy. “You guuuuuuys, how come you never said anything in your letters?! Congratulations!”

“It’s not common knowledge yet,” Byleth said, letting go of Hilda and returning to her husband’s side. “We couldn’t risk Slitherers intercepting any letters, especially with what happened to Holst recently. Is he okay?”

“Pfffft, he’s fine now,” Hilda said, flopping down onto the nearest chair. “He’s in the throes of wedding planning himself and he’s insufferable. I mean, it’s nice that he wants to make everything perfect for Lorelai, but I don’t think she’s really that bothered, you know?” Wine and cheese sat on the table in front of her, and she helped herself to plenty of both.

“And how about you, Hilda? Sounds like your little business venture is going well,” Claude said. “Are you going to keep at it once Holst’s fully recovered?”

Hilda shrugged. “I’d like to, but I guess we’ll see how things go. I’ve been home for a while, so my pieces may not be all the rage any more.”

“Are you kidding?” Ignatz said, leaning forward. “Your pieces have been the talk of the nation! I’ve been from Enbarr to Fhirdiad in the past month, and everywhere I’ve been, your creations have been highly coveted by both the nobility and commoners alike.”

“What, really?” Hilda said, blushing. “That’s crazy, no way. I mean, I know the stock sold out like wildfire at the inn, but people are wearing them all over?”

Ignatz nodded fervently and pulled his jacket over, thrusting the lapel in Hilda’s face. One of her bird-skull brooches was pinned proudly to it. “I bought that when I passed through Raphael and Maya’s village, and it was the last one left. Maya’s been able to close the inn entirely while they’re at the wedding because they’ve made enough money to live off for the next three months, and that’s including Raphael’s training diet.”

“You’re an artisan, Hilda,” Byleth said, grinning. “Might as well embrace it. And while we’re here, the rulers of Fódlan and Almyra could do with some new crowns… and maybe a teeny-tiny one too?”

***

Hilda woke early the following morning. Despite staying up late into the night catching up with everyone, she couldn’t bear to sleep any longer. She pulled the sheets aside and got up, walking over to the balcony doors and pushing them open. The wedding preparations were already in full flow in the gardens down below. While most things had been set up the night before, Lorenz was directing the household staff in putting the final touches on everything. She had missed seeing him and Marianne last night — although Claude had gone up to Lorenz’ room partway through the night as part of his best man duties, the groom himself was too nervous to take part in the rest of the frivolities, and Marianne had been staying away from the mansion for the evening as per tradition. Lorenz looked stressed, but excited, and she felt a little flutter of her own stress and excitement start to bubble up. Although she had exchanged a few letters with Raphael during her time in Goneril, and those letters indicated that Raphael couldn’t wait to see her again, a tiny voice in the back of her mind hissed _but what if it’s not the same any more?_

Well, worrying about it wasn’t going to solve anything. Today was the day. And Hilda was going to make herself look drop dead knockout gorgeous, so Raphael wouldn’t have any other choice but to sweep her off her feet.

The ceremony itself was being held reasonably early in the day — Alliance ceremonies were notoriously long, this one would no doubt be longer still thanks to Lorenz, and Marianne wanted everyone to be able to properly enjoy themselves afterwards — so breakfast had been delivered to everyone’s rooms by maids. “I don’t even know if they’ve arrived yet…” Hilda mumbled to herself through a mouthful of melon. She gulped down some tea and looked at the clock. “Time to get to work.”

***

She found Claude and Byleth on the stairs, looking extremely regal. Claude had gone back to a more traditional Alliance styled jacket, although the pattern in the fabric was Almyran through and through. Byleth was dressed to match in an elegant gold and green gown that, while flattering, did an excellent job of hiding her baby bump. “Looking good, guys!” Hilda said, kissing them both on the cheek.

“Wow, Hilda… you look stunning as always,” Claude winked. She giggled and did a little twirl — her dress was a deep midnight blue that went all the way down to the floor, with a slit down the side that even Manuela might have considered scandalous. Her shoulders were left bare, and she wore her hair down in a loose wave. “I’d say are you ready for the wedding of the century, but then… we had the best wedding of all time,” Claude quipped, smiling at Byleth, who promptly punched him in the arm and said “Nobody was at our wedding because we did it in secret and you headed off to Almyra two weeks later.” He shrugged nonchalantly and held his arm out for his wife to take, and the three of them descended down the stairs and headed for the gardens.

Claude and Byleth entered first, drawing the attention of all the guests that had already started milling about. Hilda was pretty glad about that, because it gave her time to compose herself and cast an eye out over the crowd. And there he was, talking to Ignatz as if it were just another day at the monastery. Hilda had never seen Raphael look so handsome — he wore a suit in almost the same colour as her dress, and it had been cut just for him so he wasn’t bursting out of the seams. His velvet jacket was finely detailed with gold embroidery, in a pattern that looked almost like sweet peas. However, nobody had attempted to tame his hair, which was probably for the best — Hilda liked that he still looked a little rough around the edges.

After what seemed like an eternity, he turned around and met her eyes, a smile as dazzling as the sunshine gracing his features as soon as he saw her. He excused himself from Ignatz and dashed over as quickly as he could without knocking anyone over. “_Hilda,” _he breathed, looking her over. “You look incredible!” He took her hands in his and kissed her on the cheek. “I’ve never seen anyone look as beautiful as you do right now, Hilda. Or, well, as you look all the time, you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met, and…” he babbled, before Hilda went up onto her tiptoes and captured his lips in a hungry, needy kiss.

***

The ceremony itself was indeed long, but it was sweet and earnest and very Lorenz and Marianne. She was stunning in her nature-inspired wedding gown, which had silk meadow flowers sewn into the lace of her train, and she wore a crown of red roses in deference to her new husband. Lorenz had been the first to cry as he saw her walk down the aisle, but Marianne had followed suit not long after during Lorenz’ admittedly beautiful wedding vows, along with half the guests. Raphael sniffled and wiped silent tears from his eyes, while Hilda tried her best to stop her mascara from streaking. Throughout most of the ceremony, he kept Hilda’s hand in a gentle, yet firm grip. Occasionally, Hilda noticed him stealing glances at her as if he couldn’t believe she was really there. At the exchange of rings, Hilda leaned her head onto Raphael’s arm and could feel him practically trembling. She squeezed his hand and looked up at him, and saw nothing but love in pools of honey.

***

“This is the best cake I have _ever _eaten,” Maya declared, promptly shovelling another forkful into her mouth. “Seriously, Raph, you have all these friends in high places and you’ve never scored us an invite to anything like this before?” she said, shoving him with her shoulder.

“Nobody else has gotten married yet!” Raphael whined, pretending to look hurt. “But hey, I got you invited to this one, right?”

“I guess,” Maya shrugged nonchalantly. She dabbed delicately at her mouth with her napkin before standing up and holding out a hand to Ignatz. “Wanna dance?”

“W-why yes, I think that’d be l-lovely,” Ignatz stammered and took her over to the dance floor. Claude and Byleth were twirling around like there was no tomorrow, Lysithea had found a partner in Cyril and even Leonie had made her way onto the floor with some unsuspecting noble. It felt wonderful to have almost everyone back in the same room — Seteth and Flayn had apparently made some excuses, and Holst was still too unwell to travel, but otherwise, the rest of the Garreg Mach contingent, along with half of the Leicester Alliance nobility, had made their way to honour Lorenz and Marianne.

“So… uh…” Raphael started bashfully. “Do you…?”

Hilda rolled her eyes and stood up. “Come on, big guy, let’s show them how it’s done.” She held out her hand and Raphael laced his fingers with hers, walking her over to the dance floor. The band had started a slower song, so Hilda threw her arms around his neck and pulled him close. “I’m so glad you’re here,” she said. “I missed you so much when I was back at home.”

“I missed you more, I think,” Raphael replied, smiling warmly. “Maya said I was getting really annoying because I kept asking her when you might be coming back. ‘As if I’d know, you’re the one who gets letters from her!’” he said, pulling his facial expressions into the perfect approximation of an exasperated Maya. “Honestly, I felt kinda lost without you there, y’know? Don’t get me wrong, moving back to the inn was the best decision I could have made following the war, and I love working there, but as soon as you left… it felt like a part of home was gone.”

“I thought that the inn really felt like home, too” Hilda said. “Or maybe it was just you.” Raphael beamed before sweeping her up in his arms and kissing her. Hilda swore she could hear Claude whooping in the background, but she refused to let him pull her out of the moment. Eventually, Raphael put her down and they went outside into the gardens to bask in the calm of the still summer evening.

“Lorenz really has a beautiful place, huh?” Hilda said, sitting down on a stone bench nestled between the Gloucester family’s signature red roses. Raphael sat down next to her and slung an arm around her shoulders, pulling her into his side.“It’s okay,” he shrugged. “The food was pretty amazing, I gotta say. All that beef, and lamb, and the potatoes, and even the cake!” His eyes shined bright in the moonlight and Hilda suppressed a giggle when he started rhapsodising about the gravy. “…you know, back at the monastery, I always really liked you,” Raphael said, his ode to the wedding feast over with. “Before the war, I always wondered what it’d be like.”

“What it’d be like…?” Hilda prompted, drawing closer to him.

Raphael sighed gently, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “With you, you know? But that was it. You were a noble, and you were — are — so pretty, and I was just a country boy. I figured the best I’d ever get would be to serve under your household, because at least then I might see you. Then… then the war happened, and I had to make sure that Maya would be okay, and there wasn’t any time or reason to even imagine what might have been, because we might not have even made it to tomorrow.”

“Hey.” Hilda looked up into his eyes, so full of promise. “We made it. Despite all the odds, we made it.” She stood up and stretched, and the folds of her dress that caught the bright moonlight shimmered like the stars above. “And I like country boys, as it turns out.” She crooked her finger in a come hither movement and Raphael rose from his seat, taking her in his arms and kissing her like the night would never end.

“Come home with me?” he said breathlessly.

“I thought you’d never ask,” she replied.

***

They married in the spring. Rumours quickly spread throughout Fódlan that Lord Holst was the one who cried the most as Hilda and Raphael were pronounced man and wife. They weren’t wrong.


	2. Epilogue

“Mama.” He peered over the desk and placed his stuffed bunny on top of the work surface. “Mama, Leo won’ lemme train.”

Hilda sighed with mock exasperation and put the necklace she was working on back on the table. “That Leo, huh? What a mean old brother. Come here, Mikey, and tell Mama all about it,” she said, holding her arms out. Mikey ran into them like only little children could, with tottering, rapid steps, and Hilda lifted him into her lap, placing a gentle kiss on top of wild pink curls. “Why did Leo say you couldn’t train with him and Daddy?”

“He says I’m too small an’ Daddy won’ let me cause I’m too small,” he mumbled, clinging to his mother’s chest. Hilda stroked his hair and rocked him back and forth soothingly. “Well, I like that you’re small because I get to cuddle you like this,” Hilda said, smiling. “But I’m sure that Daddy didn’t say that, so why don’t we go find out what the real story is?” Mikey nodded fervently so Hilda stood, hefting him into a more comfortable position, and headed through the studio door, waving to Ignatz as she left.

Victor and Valentine had become Fódlan’s hotspot for artisan goods. When Ignatz and Maya had married, not long after Hilda and Raphael did, the Kirstens made the decision to shut the inn for good and turn it into a full-time accessory shop and art studio. The two families had built houses just down the road — a necessary separation to stop Ignatz from spending too much in the studio — but Raphael still trained in the same fields as before, only nowadays usually accompanied by a gaggle of children who would hang from his biceps as weights. Sure enough, he was there that afternoon, accompanied by their eldest son Leo, who was swinging a practice sword wildly in his father’s direction. As soon as he saw them, Raphael waved and grinned broadly, running over to see them.

“Hey, there’s my little champ and my beautiful wife!” he said, kissing Hilda on the cheek. “What’s up, buddy?”

“It seems like our eldest has been telling porkie pies,” Hilda said, casting a stern glance at Leo, who proceeded to stare at his shoes as if they were the most interesting thing on the planet. “Apparently Mikey can’t join in because he’s too small.”

“Small doesn’t mean you’re not strong,” Raphael said softly, ruffling Mikey’s hair. “Look at your mom — she swings an axe twice her size and she’s tiny! So of course you can join in, but we just have to be careful and adapt our training so it’s safe for everyone. You gonna train today, buddy?”

Mikey nodded slowly, and Hilda put him down. She crossed the distance to her other son and lifted his chin up with her finger, staring deep into honey-coloured eyes. “Why did you want to leave your brother out, sweetie?”

“Cause I just wanted it to be me and Dad today,” Leo replied sullenly, shaking his blond hair out of his face. “Mikey’s _always _around and I love him but…” he sighed. “He’s hard work sometimes.”

“That’s family, kiddo,” she said, pulling him into a hug. “Look, we’ll figure something out but you can’t just tell him he can’t join in. He’s your little brother and you need to set a good example, okay?”

Leo relaxed into his mother’s embrace and nodded in agreement. “Yeah, okay, Mom. I’ll… do better, I promise.” Hilda let him go and he dashed over to his wooden sword, picking it up and taking jabs at a practice dummy while Raphael proceeded to show Mikey how to hold a shield properly.

She turned and started heading back to the studio, but she was stopped by solid arms wrapping around her and a kiss to her temple. Hilda swivelled round to face her husband, who promptly swooped in to kiss her lips tenderly while the kids yelled ‘yuuuuuck’ in the background. “You gonna stay and show them how it’s done?” Raphael said. He gestured over to a familiar silver axe on his makeshift rack, its handle adorned with roses.

“First one to the ground?” Hilda said with a wink and sashayed over to the rack, testing the weight of the axe in both hands. “I was born ready, Kirsten.”

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written fanfic in about... ten years? So I hope this was reasonably in character. Regardless, it was a fun little challenge to myself and who knows, I might dip my toe back into the Three Houses fandom again sometime. Thanks for reading!


End file.
